British Virgin Islands (2002) | Bangladesh (2005) | |
Administrative divisions | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 6 divisions; Barisal, Chittagong, Dhaka, Khulna, Rajshahi, and Sylhet |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 22.4% (male 2,401; female 2,351)
15-64 years: 72.7% (male 7,962; female 7,509) 65 years and over: 4.9% (male 565; female 484) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 33.1% (male 24,590,207/female 23,162,420)
15-64 years: 63.5% (male 46,764,824/female 44,868,733) 65 years and over: 3.4% (male 2,650,683/female 2,282,761) (2005 est.) |
Agriculture - products | fruits, vegetables; livestock, poultry; fish | rice, jute, tea, wheat, sugarcane, potatoes, tobacco, pulses, oilseeds, spices, fruit; beef, milk, poultry |
Airports | 3 (2001) | 16 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 15
over 3,047 m: 1 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 6 (2004 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 (2004 est.) |
Area | total: 153 sq km
land: 153 sq km water: 0 sq km note: comprised of 16 inhabited and more than 20 uninhabited islands; includes the island of Anegada |
total: 144,000 sq km
land: 133,910 sq km water: 10,090 sq km |
Area - comparative | about 0.9 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Iowa |
Background | First settled by the Dutch in 1648, the islands were annexed in 1672 by the English. The economy is closely tied to the larger and more populous US Virgin Islands to the west; the US dollar is the legal currency. | Bangladesh came into existence in 1971 when Bengali East Pakistan seceded from its union with West Pakistan. About a third of this extremely poor country floods annually during the monsoon rainy season, hampering economic development. |
Birth rate | 15.09 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 30.01 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $121.5 million
expenditures: $115.5 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997) |
revenues: $5.921 billion
expenditures: $8.262 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) |
Capital | Road Town | Dhaka |
Climate | subtropical; humid; temperatures moderated by trade winds | tropical; mild winter (October to March); hot, humid summer (March to June); humid, warm rainy monsoon (June to October) |
Coastline | 80 km | 580 km |
Constitution | 1 June 1977 | 4 November 1972, effective 16 December 1972; suspended following coup of 24 March 1982, restored 10 November 1986; amended many times |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: British Virgin Islands abbreviation: BVI |
conventional long form: People's Republic of Bangladesh
conventional short form: Bangladesh former: East Pakistan |
Currency | US dollar (USD) | - |
Death rate | 4.42 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 8.4 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Debt - external | $36.1 million (1997) | $19.97 billion (2004 est.) |
Dependency status | overseas territory of the UK; internal self-governing | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | chief of mission: Ambassador Harry K. THOMAS, Jr.
embassy: Madani Avenue, Baridhara, Dhaka 1212 mailing address: G. P. O. Box 323, Dhaka 1000 telephone: [880] (2) 885-5500 FAX: [880] (2) 882-3744 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | chief of mission: Ambassador Shamsher Mobin CHOWDHURY
chancery: 3510 International Drive NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 244-0183 FAX: [1] (202) 244-5366 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles and New York |
Disputes - international | none | discussions with India remain stalled to delimit a small section of river boundary, exchange 162 miniscule enclaves in both countries, allocate divided villages, and stop illegal cross-border trade, migration, violence, and transit of terrorists through the porous border; Bangladesh protests India's attempts to fence off high-traffic sections of the porous boundary; a joint Bangladesh-India boundary inspection in 2005 revealed 92 pillars are missing; dispute with India over New Moore/South Talpatty/Purbasha Island in the Bay of Bengal deters maritime boundary delimitation; Burmese Muslim refugees strain Bangladesh's meager resources |
Economic aid - recipient | NA | $1.575 billion (2000 est.) |
Economy - overview | The economy, one of the most stable and prosperous in the Caribbean, is highly dependent on tourism, generating an estimated 45% of the national income. An estimated 350,000 tourists, mainly from the US, visited the islands in 1998. In the mid-1980s, the government began offering offshore registration to companies wishing to incorporate in the islands, and incorporation fees now generate substantial revenues. Roughly 400,000 companies were on the offshore registry by yearend 2000. The adoption of a comprehensive insurance law in late 1994, which provides a blanket of confidentiality with regulated statutory gateways for investigation of criminal offenses, is expected to make the British Virgin Islands even more attractive to international business. Livestock raising is the most important agricultural activity; poor soils limit the islands' ability to meet domestic food requirements. Because of traditionally close links with the US Virgin Islands, the British Virgin Islands has used the dollar as its currency since 1959. | Despite sustained domestic and international efforts to improve economic and demographic prospects, Bangladesh remains a poor, overpopulated, and ill-governed nation. Although half of GDP is generated through the service sector, nearly two-thirds of Bangladeshis are employed in the agriculture sector, with rice as the single-most-important product. Major impediments to growth include frequent cyclones and floods, inefficient state-owned enterprises, inadequate port facilities, a rapidly growing labor force that cannot be absorbed by agriculture, delays in exploiting energy resources (natural gas), insufficient power supplies, and slow implementation of economic reforms. Economic reform is stalled in many instances by political infighting and corruption at all levels of government. Progress also has been blocked by opposition from the bureaucracy, public sector unions, and other vested interest groups. The BNP government, led by Prime Minister Khaleda ZIA, has the parliamentary strength to push through needed reforms, but the party's political will to do so has been lacking in key areas. One encouraging note: growth has been a steady 5% for the past several years. |
Electricity - consumption | 39.1 million kWh (1999) | 15.3 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 0 kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production | 42 million kWh (1999) | 16.45 billion kWh (2002) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
- |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Sage 521 m |
lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m
highest point: Keokradong 1,230 m |
Environment - current issues | limited natural fresh water resources (except for a few seasonal streams and springs on Tortola, most of the islands' water supply comes from wells and rainwater catchments) | many people are landless and forced to live on and cultivate flood-prone land; water-borne diseases prevalent in surface water; water pollution, especially of fishing areas, results from the use of commercial pesticides; ground water contaminated by naturally occurring arsenic; intermittent water shortages because of falling water tables in the northern and central parts of the country; soil degradation and erosion; deforestation; severe overpopulation |
Environment - international agreements | - | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements |
Ethnic groups | black 83%, white, Indian, Asian and mixed | Bengali 98%, tribal groups, non-Bengali Muslims (1998) |
Exchange rates | the US dollar is used | taka per US dollar - 59.513 (2004), 58.15 (2003), 57.888 (2002), 55.807 (2001), 52.142 (2000) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor Tom MACAN (since 14 October 2002)
head of government: Chief Minister Ralph T. O'NEAL (since 15 May 1995) cabinet: Executive Council appointed by the governor from members of the Legislative Council elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed chief minister by the governor |
chief of state: President Iajuddin AHMED (since 6 September 2002); note - the president's duties are normally ceremonial, but with the 13th amendment to the constitution ("Caretaker Government Amendment"), the president's role becomes significant at times when Parliament is dissolved and a caretaker government is installed - at presidential direction - to supervise the elections
head of government: Prime Minister Khaleda ZIA (since 10 October 2001) cabinet: Cabinet selected by the prime minister and appointed by the president elections: president elected by National Parliament for a five-year term; election scheduled for 16 September 2002 was not held since Iajuddin AHMED was the only presidential candidate; he was sworn in on 6 September 2002 (next election to be held by NA 2007); following legislative elections, the leader of the party that wins the most seats is usually appointed prime minister by the president election results: Iajuddin AHMED declared by the Election Commission elected unopposed as president; percent of National Parliament vote - NA |
Exports | $6.2 million | NA |
Exports - commodities | rum, fresh fish, fruits, animals; gravel, sand | garments, jute and jute goods, leather, frozen fish and seafood (2001) |
Exports - partners | Virgin Islands (US), Puerto Rico, US | US 22.4%, Germany 14.5%, UK 11.2%, France 6.9%, Italy 4% (2004) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | 1 July - 30 June |
Flag description | blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Virgin Islander coat of arms centered in the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms depicts a woman flanked on either side by a vertical column of six oil lamps above a scroll bearing the Latin word VIGILATE (Be Watchful) | green with a large red disk slightly to the hoist side of center; the red sun of freedom represents the blood shed to achieve independence; the green field symbolizes the lush countryside, and secondarily, the traditional color of Islam |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $311 million (2000 est.) | - |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 2%
industry: 6% services: 92% (1996 est.) |
agriculture: 21.2%
industry: 27.1% services: 51.7% (2004 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $16,000 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2,000 (2004 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.4% (2000 est.) | 4.9% (2004 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 18 30 N, 64 30 W | 24 00 N, 90 00 E |
Geography - note | strong ties to nearby US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico | most of the country is situated on deltas of large rivers flowing from the Himalayas: the Ganges unites with the Jamuna (main channel of the Brahmaputra) and later joins the Meghna to eventually empty into the Bay of Bengal |
Highways | total: 177 km
paved: 177 km unpaved: 0 km (2000) |
total: 207,486 km
paved: 19,773 km unpaved: 187,713 km (1999) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 3.9%
highest 10%: 28.6% (1995-96 est.) |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for South American narcotics destined for the US and Europe; large offshore financial center | transit country for illegal drugs produced in neighboring countries |
Imports | $230 million (2000 est.) | NA |
Imports - commodities | building materials, automobiles, foodstuffs, machinery | machinery and equipment, chemicals, iron and steel, textiles, foodstuffs, petroleum products, cement (2000) |
Imports - partners | Virgin Islands (US), Puerto Rico, US | India 15.1%, China 12.5%, Singapore 7.5%, Kuwait 5.5%, Japan 5.3%, Hong Kong 4.5% (2004) |
Independence | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 16 December 1971 (from West Pakistan); note - 26 March 1971 is the date of independence from West Pakistan, 16 December 1971 is known as Victory Day and commemorates the official creation of the state of Bangladesh |
Industrial production growth rate | 4% (1985) | 6.5% (2004 est.) |
Industries | tourism, light industry, construction, rum, concrete block, offshore financial center | cotton textiles, jute, garments, tea processing, paper newsprint, cement, chemical fertilizer, light engineering, sugar |
Infant mortality rate | 19.55 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 62.6 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 63.65 deaths/1,000 live births female: 61.48 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.3% (2000) | 6% (2004 est.) |
International organization participation | Caricom (associate), CDB, ECLAC (associate), Interpol (subbureau), IOC, OECS (associate), UNESCO (associate) | AsDB, C, CP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM, OIC, ONUB, OPCW, SAARC, SACEP, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMIL, UNMISET, UNOCI, UNOMIG, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 16 (2000) | - |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 38,440 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, consisting of the High Court of Justice and the Court of Appeal (one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident of the islands and presides over the High Court); Magistrate's Court; Juvenile Court; Court of Summary Jurisdiction | Supreme Court (the chief justices and other judges are appointed by the president) |
Labor force | 4,911 (1980) | 65.49 million
note: extensive export of labor to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, UAE, Oman, Qatar, and Malaysia; workers' remittances estimated at $1.71 billion in 1998-99 (2004 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% | agriculture 63%, industry 11%, services 26% (FY95/96) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 4,246 km
border countries: Burma 193 km, India 4,053 km |
Land use | arable land: 20%
permanent crops: 6.67% other: 73.33% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 62.11%
permanent crops: 3.07% other: 34.82% (2001) |
Languages | English (official) | Bangla (official, also known as Bengali), English |
Legal system | English law | based on English common law |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Council (13 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote, one member from each of 9 electoral districts, four at-large members; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 17 May 1999 (next to be held NA 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - VIP 7, CCM 1, NDP 5 |
unicameral National Parliament or Jatiya Sangsad; 300 seats elected by popular vote from single territorial constituencies (the constitutional amendment reserving 30 seats for women over and above the 300 regular parliament seats expired in May 2001); members serve five-year terms
elections: last held 1 October 2001 (next to be held before October 2006) election results: percent of vote by party - BNP and alliance partners 47%, AL 40%; seats by party - BNP 195, AL 58, JI 17, JP (Ershad faction) 14, IOJ 3, JP (Naziur) 4, other 9; note - the election of October 2001 brought a majority BNP government aligned with three other smaller parties - Jamaat-e-Islami, Islami Oikya Jote, and Jatiya Party (Manzur) |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 75.85 years
male: 74.9 years female: 76.84 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 62.08 years
male: 62.13 years female: 62.02 years (2005 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97.8% (1991 est.) male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 43.1% male: 53.9% female: 31.8% (2003 est.) |
Location | Caribbean, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Puerto Rico | Southern Asia, bordering the Bay of Bengal, between Burma and India |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Asia |
Maritime claims | exclusive fishing zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 3 NM |
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 18 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: up to the outer limits of the continental margin |
Merchant marine | total: 1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 70,285 GRT/6,946 DWT
ships by type: passenger 1 (2002 est.) |
total: 41 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 319,897 GRT/440,575 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 2, cargo 28, container 6, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum tanker 4 foreign-owned: 10 (China 1, Singapore 9) registered in other countries: 14 (2005) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the UK | - |
Military branches | - | Army, Navy, Air Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $995.3 million (2004) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 1.8% (2004) |
National holiday | Territory Day, 1 July | Independence Day, 26 March (1971); note - 26 March 1971 is the date of independence from West Pakistan, 16 December 1971 is Victory Day and commemorates the official creation of the state of Bangladesh |
Nationality | noun: British Virgin Islander(s)
adjective: British Virgin Islander |
noun: Bangladeshi(s)
adjective: Bangladeshi |
Natural hazards | hurricanes and tropical storms (July to October) | droughts, cyclones; much of the country routinely inundated during the summer monsoon season |
Natural resources | NEGL | natural gas, arable land, timber, coal |
Net migration rate | 10.91 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | -0.69 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) |
Pipelines | - | gas 2,012 km (2004) |
Political parties and leaders | Concerned Citizens Movement or CCM [Ethlyn SMITH]; National Democratic Party or NDP [Orlando SMITH]; United Party or UP [Gregory MADURO]; Virgin Islands Party or VIP [Ralph T. O'NEAL] | Awami League or AL [Sheikh HASINA]; Bangladesh Communist Party or BCP [Saifuddin Ahmed MANIK]; Bangladesh Nationalist Party or BNP [Khaleda ZIA, chairperson]; Islami Oikya Jote or IOJ [Mufti Fazlul Haq AMINI]; Jamaat-e-Islami or JI [Motiur Rahman NIZAMI]; Jatiya Party or JP (Ershad faction) [Hussain Mohammad ERSHAD]; Jatiya Party (Manzur faction) [Naziur Rahman MANZUR] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 21,272 (July 2002 est.) | 144,319,628 (July 2005 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | 45% (2004 est.) |
Population growth rate | 2.16% (2002 est.) | 2.09% (2005 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Road Town | Chittagong, Mongla Port |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 4, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 12, FM 12, shortwave 2 (1999) |
Radios | 9,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | total: 2,706 km
broad gauge: 884 km 1.676-m gauge narrow gauge: 1,822 km 1.000-m gauge (2004) |
Religions | Protestant 86% (Methodist 33%, Anglican 17%, Church of God 9%, Seventh-Day Adventist 6%, Baptist 4%, Jehovah's Witnesses 2%, other 2%), Roman Catholic 10%, none 2%, other 2% (1991) | Muslim 83%, Hindu 16%, other 1% (1998) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.17 male(s)/female total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.16 male(s)/female total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2005 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: worldwide telephone service
domestic: NA international: submarine cable to Bermuda |
general assessment: totally inadequate for a modern country
domestic: modernizing; introducing digital systems; trunk systems include VHF and UHF microwave radio relay links, and some fiber-optic cable in cities international: country code - 880; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Indian Ocean); international radiotelephone communications and landline service to neighboring countries (2000) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 10,000 (1996) | 740,000 (2003) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 1.365 million (2003) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (plus one cable company) (1997) | 15 (1999) |
Terrain | coral islands relatively flat; volcanic islands steep, hilly | mostly flat alluvial plain; hilly in southeast |
Total fertility rate | 1.72 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 3.13 children born/woman (2005 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 3% (1995) | 40% (includes underemployment) (2004 est.) |
Waterways | none | 8,372 km
note: includes 2,575 km main cargo routes (2004) |